The article below was originally published in the Kurdish Question on June 14, 2016.
Before the beginning of the civil war, life in Syria was relatively different in comparison to other Arab countries.
The people of Manbij would freely spend time outside, visit parks and cafes and enjoy dinners in restaurants till late night hours during the summer months. Women and men would go to places of entertainment together, and they would even join demos against the Assad regime together.
Syrian Civil War leads to a changed Syria
Yet, the situation in Manbij changed gradually in the wake of the civil war that began in 2011, and the occupation of groups affiliated to the Syrian National Coalition from 2011 to 2014. The city degraded into a place dominated by sharia law. The situation in the city worsened with occupation by Islamic State (IS) militants in 2014.
After seizing control of the entire city, IS militants formed a system with local people and former government staff. They introduced sharia laws and formed their own sharia courts within the already existing system.
It was impossible to resist or protest these practices. The city’s residents had to obey the laws in order to gain access to security, food and services.
Yet, energy and water supplies in the city were destroyed and life became more difficult for civilians as aerial bombardments by the US-led international coalition intensified in the recent period.
The treatment of women in the IS-occupied areas has been covered by the press to some extent. Statements of locals, mainly women, in the areas liberated by People’s/Women’s Protection Units (YPG/YPJ) and Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) forces, reveal how they had been treated by the Islamic State.
Young women were never allowed to go out alone without a close relative (generally their fathers, brothers or husbands). Women had to wear the burqa or veil that covered all their bodies from head to toe.
IS militants also established so-called Islamic asayish (public security) units that inspected women in Manbij like they did in Raqqa.
A special asayish unit constantly patrolled the streets to inspect men’s attire too, to make sure that sharia laws were followed. It was forbidden to smoke and those who did were subjected to lashings in the event of being caught by so-called security units. It was also compulsory for me to go to mosque to perform prayer five times a day.
ANF spoke to two women from Manbij, Fatima Mihemmed and Rabia Hassan, who lived under IS occupation for two years.
Where were you born and where did you grow up?
My name is Fatima Mihemmed. I was born in Manbij and have lived here since.
I have been trying to continue my life under IS occupation since 2014. In the wake of the operation launched by the fighters of the Manbij Military Council to end the IS occupation in our land, I fled the city and took refuge in the areas liberated during this military campaign.
What sort of a life did women in Manbij lead?
Women in Manbij dress in accordance with Islamic culture, like in all the other societies of the Middle East. However, this Islamic culture is not like that claimed and imposed by Islamic State.
After occupying our region, IS created an Islamic model in line with their own ideology. This model is monolithic and in regards to dress accepts only completely black dress. Women couldn’t go out without men. Nor could they smoke or even visit a neighbor.
How did the Rojava revolution make you feel?
Women were also oppressed during the Baath regime, and subjected to continuous pressure, similar to the typical Middle Eastern society.
But life for women became more oppressive with the emergence of jihadist gangs such as IS, Al-Nusra, Ahrar Al-Sham and Jaysh Al-Islam during the Syrian civil war. Claiming to be fighting for Islam and Allah, they subjected our people to massacre, torture, rape and exile.
This emerging situation affected women more than anyone else. The Rojava Revolution arose under such circumstances, and it affected me like the other women in Syria and even around the world. I can say that the Rojava revolution tore down all the taboos in Middle Eastern societies, especially the taboos identified with women.
This is why I felt hope, emancipation and freedom in the Rojava Revolution, and I believe that all the other women are of the same opinion with me.
Mrs. Rabia Hasan, where were you born and raised?
I was also born and raised in Manbij center. I will continue living in my hometown once it is liberated. I will, however, be living in a free Manbij from now on.
What did you experience under IS occupation, what has changed in your life?
The peoples of the region were in fear after IS occupation. We knew they burned people alive, beheaded and severely tortured them. In the nature of things, one obeys their rules in order to remain alive.
During IS occupation, we saw a mentality that ignores women, makes them sex slaves, decides on how they dress and grants them a right to life only in line with their principles. Life for women became unbearable after IS occupation.
We were trying to continue living in our houses and couldn’t go out. Our lives became a prison. We were also having difficulty meeting our daily basic needs. We couldn’t afford anything due to financial difficulties, and what’s more the gangs were determining the prices of basic needs as they wished.
Theu were imposing heavy taxes on the locals involved in agriculture and animal husbandry. They were seizing the agricultural products and animals, in addition to collecting money from villagers under the name of charity and alms.
We have heard of fatwas issued by IS against women. What were these fatwas like?
The fatwas ordered women to marry IS members. The wives of killed IS members were ordered to marry other members. These were just some of the fatwas issued by them.
We saw you screaming with joy after taking shelter in liberated areas. What do you have to say in this regard?
Using Islam as a pretext, IS ruined the lives of women. We were overjoyed when our villages were liberated, and taking off our niqabs and burqas, we ran towards the fighters. We were dancing the dance of freedom and screamed with joy. We thank all the fighters, they rescued us from IS occupation at the cost of their lives.
The peoples of Syria are multi-ethnic and multi-voiced. Gang groups like IS, Al-Nusra, Ahrar Al-Sham and Jaysh Al-Sham will not be able to destroy this plurality. No power can fade the color of women.
Read the original interview on the Kurdish Question here.
